ALL PROBLEMS HAVE SOLUTIONS SO DOES MENTAL ILLNESS
By Mary Louise Vapor-Uyvico
Mental health refers to cognitive, behavioral, and emotional well-being. It is all about how
people think, feel, and behave. People sometimes use the term “mental health” to mean the
absence of a mental disorder. Having a good mental health allows an individual to enjoy life and
make most of his or her time productive. Having unhealthy lifestyle, stress, depression and
anxiety can all contribute to mental health disruptions. The World Health Organization explains
that mental health is “more than just the absence of mental disorders or disabilities. Peak mental
health is about not only avoiding active conditions but also looking after ongoing wellness and
happiness. If a certain individual experiences signs and symptoms of mental health disorder such
as feeling hopeless, being unable to complete daily tasks, thinking of causing physical harm to
self or to others, hearing voices or being delusional, eating or sleeping too much or too little and
display consistent negative emotions then he or she needs treatment.
According to American Psychiatric Association Mental Illness are health conditions involving
changes in emotion, thinking or behavior (or a combination of these). APA also added that
mental illness refers to collectively to all diagnosable mental disorders, these are health
conditions involving significant changes in thinking, emotion and behavior, distress or problems
functioning in social, family or work activities.
Most if not all, fear of being judged by others due to having mental illness so instead of seeking
professional help they hide it from others. The stigma of having mental disorder restrains an
individual from getting professional help and neglect the needed treatment. There are also some
who plainly do not know who to approach and where to go. The result of this is that, the mental
sufferers will not receive the proper medication and will be left untreated. There are several
reasons why most people suffer mental health illness, it could be either due to psychological
disorder, biological disorder, life stressors and so on. People who has depression, anxiety
disorders, sleeping or eating disorders, schizophrenia, alcohol or drug abuse and much more
struggle from day-to-day because mental illness can cause a miserable life and affects the ability
to function well enough.
The lifestyle and living standards of the 21st century society is prone to anxiety, suicide and
depression. Failure to address mental health concerns or problems has consequences and would
greatly affect not just with family members but the society as well. Mental health sufferers cause
domino effect, it influences a wide range of social and economic factors. These includes
unemployment, lack of education, social support, discrimination and violence, community safety
and much more. Families of people with mental illness can be an extremely traumatic and
painful experience for all the members of the family and has a great impact on the family’s
emotional state. Looking after a family member who has a mental illness can also cause stress
and emotional instability (guilt, confusion, fear, anger) if not well-informed or knowledgeable on
how to handle such. The blame usually goes to the family members when someone from their
family suffers mental illness. Non-supportive families can add up to mental health problem or
worsen the mental illness. Mental Health sufferers must feel the emotional support,
companionship and being loved by the family members. This will help them withstand mental
health problems. Families of the mental health sufferers must seek the advice of a mental health
professionals.
Professionals in the field of Mental health such as psychologists or psychiatrists needs an in-
depth knowledge of the theoretical foundations of mental health and mental illness. The purpose
of these theories is to provide am explanation on how and why an individual think and act in a
certain way. It also gives basis for understanding ourselves and others. There are numerous
methods and strategies in managing mental health problems. What works for one person may not
work for another person. Some treatments are more successful to certain condition and some are
not. These, mental health sufferers must work together with experts to identify the need and
provide suitable treatment.
